Charges against the Gold Star father, Steve Nikoui, arrested after heckling President Biden during his State of the Union address were dismissed on March 20, 2024 by Washington, DC’s Democratic Attorney General, Brian Schwalb.

Nikoui, 51, was taken into custody by Capitol Police after he shouted, “Abbey Gate!” and “Second Battalion, First Marines!” during the President’s speech. He was a guest of Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.) in the gallery at the time of the incident.

Nikoui’s son, Marine Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikoui, was among the 13 US service members killed by an ISIS-K suicide bomber outside Hamid Karzai International Airport on Aug. 26, 2021, during the chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan.

The DC Attorney General’s decision not to prosecute the Gold Star father was reported by Fox News. The DC AG’s office cited past instances of protesters not being prosecuted in their defense of the decision.

Nikoui has stated that he did not intend to interrupt the speech but became frustrated when Biden mentioned slain Georgia nursing student Laken Riley, allegedly killed by an “illegal” immigrant, but not his son or the other 12 US service members killed in the Abbey Gate blast.

“I’ve waited three years, I paid $3,000 and I’ve traveled 3,000 miles to finally hear my son’s name in the State of the Union,” he told the Daily Mail. “That trip to the State of the Union what a kick in my ass.”

Nikoui was charged with crowding, obstructing, or incommoding Congress, a misdemeanor that usually results in the offender paying a $50 fine and being released. Several Republican lawmakers, including Reps. Brian Mast, Michael Waltz, and Darrell Issa, had called for the charges against the Gold Star father to be dropped.